81R2962 BEF-D
 
  By: Carona S.B. No. 1077
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to certain persons and activities regulated by the
  Department of Public Safety.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
  ARTICLE 1.  AUTHORITY OF DEPARTMENT TO OBTAIN AND USE CRIMINAL
  HISTORY RECORD INFORMATION FOR CERTAIN DEPARTMENTAL AUTHORIZATIONS
         SECTION 1.01.  Subchapter F, Chapter 411, Government Code,
  is amended by adding Section 411.0891 to read as follows:
         Sec. 411.0891.  DEPARTMENT ACCESS TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD
  INFORMATION: CERTAIN DEPARTMENTAL AUTHORIZATIONS. (a) Subject to
  Section 411.087, the department is authorized to obtain and use
  criminal history record information maintained by the Federal
  Bureau of Investigation or the department that relates to a person
  who:
               (1)  is an applicant for or holds a registration issued
  by the director under Subchapter C, Chapter 481, Health and Safety
  Code, that authorizes the person to manufacture, distribute,
  analyze, or conduct research with a controlled substance;
               (2)  is an applicant for or holds a chemical precursor
  transfer permit issued by the director under Section 481.078,
  Health and Safety Code;
               (3)  is an applicant for or holds a chemical laboratory
  apparatus transfer permit issued by the director under Section
  481.081, Health and Safety Code;
               (4)  is an applicant for certification by the
  department as an inspection station or an inspector under
  Subchapter G, Chapter 548, Transportation Code, holds an inspection
  station or inspector certificate issued under that subchapter, or
  is the owner of an inspection station operating under that chapter;
  or
               (5)  is an applicant for approval or has been approved
  as a program sponsor by the department under Chapter 662,
  Transportation Code, is an applicant for certification by the
  department as an instructor under that chapter, or holds an
  instructor certificate issued under that chapter.
         (b)  The department may release or disclose criminal history
  record information obtained or used by the department for a purpose
  described by Subsection (a) to another person or agency only:
               (1)  in a criminal proceeding;
               (2)  in a hearing conducted by the department;
               (3)  under an order from a court; or
               (4)  with the consent of the person who is the subject
  of the criminal history record information.
         (c)  This section may not be construed to limit the authority
  of the department to disseminate criminal history record
  information as provided by Section 411.083.
  ARTICLE 2.  CIVIL CONSEQUENCES OF CERTAIN CONVICTIONS AND
  ADJUDICATIONS ON A DRIVER'S LICENSE OR PERMIT
         SECTION 2.01.  Section 522.081(d), Transportation Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (d)  A person is disqualified from driving a commercial motor
  vehicle for life:
               (1)  if the person is convicted two or more times of an
  offense specified by Subsection (b)(2), or a combination of those
  offenses, arising from two or more separate incidents;
               (2)  if the person uses a motor vehicle in the
  commission of a felony involving:
                     (A)  the manufacture, distribution, or dispensing
  of a controlled substance; or
                     (B)  possession with intent to manufacture,
  distribute, or dispense a controlled substance; [or]
               (3)  for any combination of two or more of the
  following, arising from two or more separate incidents:
                     (A)  a conviction of the person for an offense
  described by Subsection (b)(2);
                     (B)  a refusal by the person described by
  Subsection (b)(3); and
                     (C)  an analysis of the person's blood, breath, or
  urine described by Subsection (b)(4); or
               (4)  if the person uses a motor vehicle in the
  commission of an offense under 8 U.S.C. Section 1324 that involves
  the transportation, concealment, or harboring of an alien.
         SECTION 2.02.  Section 54.042(a), Family Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  A juvenile court, in a disposition hearing under Section
  54.04, shall:
               (1)  order the Department of Public Safety to suspend a
  child's driver's license or permit, or if the child does not have a
  license or permit, to deny the issuance of a license or permit to
  the child if the court finds that the child has engaged in conduct
  that:
                     (A)  violates a law of this state enumerated in
  Section 521.342(a), Transportation Code; or
                     (B)  violates a penal law of this state or the
  United States, an element or elements of which involve a severe form
  of trafficking in persons, as defined by 22 U.S.C. Section 7102; or
               (2)  notify the Department of Public Safety of the
  adjudication, if the court finds that the child has engaged in
  conduct that violates a law of this state enumerated in Section
  521.372(a), Transportation Code.
         SECTION 2.03.  (a) The change in law made by this article to
  Section 522.081, Transportation Code, applies only in connection
  with a conviction that becomes final on or after the effective date
  of this article. A conviction that became final before the
  effective date of this article is covered by Section 522.081,
  Transportation Code, as that section existed on the date the
  conviction became final, and the former law is continued in effect
  for that purpose.
         (b)  The change in law made by this article in amending
  Section 54.042, Family Code, applies only to conduct that occurs on
  or after the effective date of this article. Conduct that occurred
  before the effective date of this article is covered by the law in
  effect at the time the conduct occurred, and the former law is
  continued in effect for that purpose.
  ARTICLE 3.  DRIVER EDUCATION AND DRIVER'S LICENSING REQUIREMENTS
  FOR MINORS
         SECTION 3.01.  Section 29.902, Education Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
         (c)  A school district shall offer a driver education and
  traffic safety course during each school year.  The district may
  charge a fee for the course in the amount determined by the agency
  to be comparable to the fee charged by commercial driving schools.
         SECTION 3.02.  Section 1001.101, Education Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         Sec. 1001.101.  DRIVER EDUCATION COURSE CURRICULUM AND
  TEXTBOOKS.  (a)  The commissioner by rule shall establish the
  curriculum and designate the textbooks to be used in a driver
  education course.
         (b)  A driver education course for a student who is under 18
  years of age must require the student to complete 34 hours of
  behind-the-wheel instruction, including at least 10 hours of
  instruction that takes place at night.
         (c)  The commissioner by rule shall determine the number of
  hours of behind-the-wheel instruction required under Subsection
  (b) to be conducted in the presence of a licensed instructor or in
  the presence of an adult who meets the requirements of Section
  521.222(d)(2), Transportation Code.
         SECTION 3.03.  Subchapter F, Chapter 1001, Education Code,
  is amended by adding Section 1001.257 to read as follows:
         Sec. 1001.257.  DENIAL OF LICENSE.  The commissioner may not
  issue or renew a driver education instructor license, including a
  temporary license, to a person who has six or more points assigned
  to the person's driver's license under Subchapter B, Chapter 708,
  Transportation Code.
         SECTION 3.04.  Section 521.165, Transportation Code, is
  amended by amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to
  read as follows:
         (c)  Except as provided by Subsection (d), in [In] issuing a
  driver's license for certain types of vehicles, the director may
  waive a driving test for an applicant who has successfully
  completed and passed the training and testing conducted by a person
  certified under Subsection (a).
         (d)  The director may not waive the driving test required by
  Section 521.161 for an applicant who is under 18 years of age.
         SECTION 3.05.  Section 521.205(a), Transportation Code, is
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The department by rule shall provide for approval of a
  driver education course conducted by the parent, stepparent, legal
  guardian, step-grandparent, or grandparent of a person who is
  required to complete a driver education course to obtain a Class C
  license. The rules must provide that:
               (1)  the person conducting the course possess a valid
  license for the preceding three years that [and the license] has not
  been suspended, revoked, or forfeited in the past three years for an
  offense that involves the operation of a motor vehicle [traffic
  related violations];
               (2)  the student driver spend a minimum number of hours
  in:
                     (A)  classroom instruction; and
                     (B)  behind-the-wheel instruction;
               (3)  the person conducting the course not be convicted
  of:
                     (A)  criminally negligent homicide; or
                     (B)  driving while intoxicated; [and]
               (4)  the person conducting the course not be disabled
  because of mental illness; and
               (5)  the person conducting the course not have six or
  more points assigned to the person's driver's license under
  Subchapter B, Chapter 708.
         SECTION 3.06.  Subchapter J, Chapter 521, Transportation
  Code, is amended by adding Section 521.206 to read as follows:
         Sec. 521.206.  COLLISION RATE STATISTICS PUBLICATION.  (a)  
  The department shall collect data regarding collisions of students
  taught by public schools, commercial driving schools, and other
  entities that offer driver education courses to students for which
  a uniform certificate of course completion is issued.  The
  collision rate is computed by determining the number of an entity's
  students who complete a driver education course during a state
  fiscal year, dividing that number by the number of collisions that
  involved students who completed such a course and that occurred in
  the 12-month period following their licensure, and expressing the
  quotient as a percentage.
         (b)  The department shall collect data regarding the
  collision rate of students taught by course instructors approved
  under Section 521.205. The collision rate is computed by
  determining the number of students who completed a course approved
  under Section 521.205 during a state fiscal year, dividing that
  number by the number of collisions that involved students who
  completed such a course and that occurred in the 12-month period
  following their licensure, and expressing the quotient as a
  percentage.
         (c)  Not later than October 1 of each year, the department
  shall issue a publication listing the collision rate for students
  taught by each driver education entity and the collision rate for
  students taught by a course instructor approved under Section
  521.205, noting the severity of collisions involving students of
  each entity and each type of course.
         SECTION 3.07.  Sections 545.424(a) and (b), Transportation
  Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A person under 18 years of age[, during the six-month
  period following issuance of an original Class A, B, or C driver's
  license to the person,] may not operate a motor vehicle:
               (1)  during the 12-month period following issuance of
  an original Class A, B, or C driver's license to the person:
                     (A)  after 10 p.m. [midnight] and before 5 a.m.
  unless the operation of the vehicle is necessary for the operator to
  attend or participate in employment or a school-related activity or
  because of a medical emergency; or
                     (B) [(2)]  with more than one passenger in the
  vehicle under 21 years of age who is not a family member; or
               (2) [(3)]  while using a wireless communications
  device.
         (b)  A person under 17 years of age who holds a restricted
  motorcycle license or moped license, during the 12-month
  [six-month] period following the issuance of an original motorcycle
  license or moped license to the person, may not operate a motorcycle
  or moped:
               (1)  after 10 p.m. [midnight] and before 5 a.m. unless:
                     (A)  the person is in sight of the person's parent
  or guardian; or
                     (B)  the operation of the vehicle is necessary for
  the operator to attend or participate in employment or a
  school-related activity or because of a medical emergency; or
               (2)  while using a wireless communications device.
         SECTION 3.08.  (a)  For the purpose of compiling data for the
  publication required by Section 521.206, Transportation Code, as
  added by this article, the Department of Public Safety shall
  determine the number of minor students taught by each driver
  education entity and the total number of minor students taught by
  courses approved under Section 521.205, Transportation Code, who
  become licensed during the state fiscal year beginning September 1,
  2009, and ending August 31, 2010.
         (b)  The first publication of collision rate data compiled
  under Section 521.206, Transportation Code, as added by this
  article, shall be issued not later than October 1, 2011.
         SECTION 3.09.  Not later than November 30, 2009, the
  Department of Public Safety shall appoint a task force to review and
  make recommendations regarding the effectiveness of the materials
  provided by the Texas Education Agency for use in courses licensed
  under Chapter 1001, Education Code, or authorized by Section
  521.205.  The task force shall consist of the following members:
               (1)  a representative of the Department of Public
  Safety;
               (2)  a representative of the Texas Education Agency;
               (3)  a commercial provider of driver education courses;
               (4)  a member of an interested group or association, as
  determined by the department; and
               (5)  other appropriate members, as determined by the
  department.
         SECTION 3.10.  (a)  Section 29.902(c), Education Code, as
  added by this article, applies beginning with the 2010-2011 school
  year.
         (b)  Section 1001.101, Education Code, as amended by this
  article, applies only to a driver education and training program
  approved by the Texas Education Agency on or after the effective
  date of this article. A program approved by the Texas Education
  Agency before the effective date of this article is subject to the
  law in effect on the date the program was approved, and that law is
  continued in effect for that purpose.
         (c)  Section 1001.257, Education Code, as added by this
  article, applies only to a person issued a license or approved to
  teach a driver education course on or after the effective date of
  this article. A person issued a license or approved to teach a
  driver education course before the effective date of this article
  is subject to the law in effect on the date the license was issued,
  and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
         (d)  Section 521.165, Transportation Code, as amended by
  this article, applies only to an application for a driver's license
  submitted on or after the effective date of this article. An
  application for a driver's license submitted before the effective
  date of this article is subject to the law in effect on the date the
  application was submitted, and that law is continued in effect for
  that purpose.
         (e)  The changes in law made by this article to Section
  521.205, Transportation Code, apply only to a course approved under
  that section that begins on or after the effective date of this
  article. A course beginning before the effective date of this
  article is governed by the law in effect on the date the course was
  commenced, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
         (f)  The changes in law made by this article to Section
  545.424, Transportation Code, apply only to a person issued a
  driver's license on or after the effective date of this article. A
  person issued a driver's license before the effective date of this
  article is governed by the law in effect on the date the license was
  issued, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
  ARTICLE 4.  EFFECTIVE DATE
         SECTION 4.01.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.